The Time Chip And Joanna Gaines Made A Brand-New Fireplace Look Tastefully Old

Chip and Joanna Gaines have often created surprising and beautiful transformations of even the most run-down and dilapidated spaces in HGTV's "Fixer Upper" series. The endeavors included a charming farmhouse in Waco, Texas, bought online, sight unseen, by an American couple living in Pakistan who planned an eventual return to the U.S. While the bones of the 1890s farmhouse were spacious and well-appointed, the Gaineses gave the home their usual treatment and transformed a rough space into a stylistic Scandinavian-meets-Moroccan-style home that fit the well-traveled couple's aesthetics.

The centerpiece of the remodel was an 1890s double-sided fireplace nested between the kitchen, dining room, and an adjacent room that may have once been a bedroom in the home. The couple was looking to add a guest room and family room space off the dining room. This desire offered Chip and Joanna a chance to break through the existing walls and highlight the double-sided fireplace to its best potential, including the beautiful cerulean blue ceramic tile that flanked one side.

As the walls began to be dismantled, the Gaineses discovered that the fireplace, which was original to the home, did not have a full chimney to the roof and was structurally unstable. This gave the couple the opportunity to rebuild a more updated fireplace that would fit the new design scheme while also making use of some of the older materials, including the blue ceramic tiles and other brickwork from an upstairs master bedroom that the HGTV stars planned to replace with Scandinavian-inspired tile.

The end result was stunning, offering an attractive and cozy divider for the larger living space that looked completely original to the home. It also gave the Gaineses a chance to echo the shape of the newly-installed arched transom, created from an old window, in the lines of the hearth itself. The overall look gives a Moroccan desert vibe while also staying true to the 19th-century farmhouse-style roots of the home.

If you're faced with a crumbling or uninspiring fireplace, real or faux, working or nonworking, one of the best ways to make it look old is to incorporate salvaged materials, either from your own home or purchased elsewhere. Great places to find antique materials include architectural salvage yards, garage sales, estate sales, flea markets, Facebook marketplace, and antique shops. This includes brick, trim, mantles, tiles, and other pieces like screens, mirrors, and accessories. Even small touches and decorative elements can add vintage and antique charm.

Other great techniques for making a new fireplace look old include painting or limewashing the existing darker brick or using rusticated stone veneer to cover up materials like marble or plaster for a more natural look. You can also switch outdated brick from the 1970s and 1980s with pretty ceramic tiles that give a look that is both vintage and endlessly modern at the same time.